OTTAWA – It’s the most concrete result of AttawapiskatChief Theresa Spence’s 44-day diet of fish broth and tea: a 13-point declaration of commitment, supported by aboriginal leaders and opposition parties, listing priorities in dealing with the issues facing indigenous Canadians.

But so far there has been no indication of any specific actions planned by the federal government on the demands on the list.

A set of summary notes – apparently written by someone at the Jan. 11 meeting between Prime Minister Stephen Harper and First Nations leaders – indicates the prime minister was unyielding on most points the chiefs raised. The Aboriginal People’s Television Network posted the “confidential draft” on its website Friday, declining to reveal the document’s source other than to say it was based on notes taken by Assembly of First Nations staff inside the meeting. The prime minister’s office declined to comment on the notes.

The eight discussion points at that Jan. 11 meeting, which some chiefs boycotted, are also part of the 13-point declaration Spence spearheaded.

They include demands such as a public commission of inquiry on violence against indigenous women and the establishment of a dedicated secretariat within the Privy Council office devoted to First Nations issues.

Some demands focus on long-term issues such as a revised fiscal relationship between First Nations and the government, and frameworks and mandates for treaty implementation.

On Thursday, interim Liberal leader Bob Rae bristled at a suggestion that the declaration he and others had signed along with Spence featured unattainable goals. He also rejected the notion that it was a face-saving measure to get Spence to end her protest fast, calling the document “an absolutely realistic assessment of the steps that need to be taken in our lifetime” if Canada is to achieve reconciliation with its aboriginal population.

Joyce Green, a University of Regina political science professor, said she thinks much of the 13-point declaration is reasonable and practical, but it requires sufficient public support.

“It places the government in the position of having to make a choice, and they will do that based on a political calculus,” Green said. “If this government doesn’t see some kind of political benefit greater than the political liability of ignoring it, then they will not move.”

The indigenous grassroots Idle No More movement, she said, is helping build non-native Canadians’ awareness of the issues and will give them some political muscle, she said.

Idle No More is planning a day of action for Monday when the House of Commons resumes business. A recent Ipsos Reid poll for Postmedia News suggested the movement has 38 per cent support among Canadians, compared to Harper’s 46 per cent approval rating on aboriginal issues.

Queen’s University Prof. Kathy Brock, who studies aboriginal self-governance, said the declaration’s importance lies in its overall message: that tangible action is needed from the federal government.

“A document like this sets a base. It signals a need for action. And if the government is going to negotiate with chiefs more broadly, then these types of items are going to change, they’re going to evolve and they’re going to become more workable.”

Specific points are less cut-and-dry. Dealing with the housing problems in First Nations communities, for example, involves a host of other complex issues including financial accountability and community engagement. And the advantages of having an oversight body for aboriginal issues in the Privy Council office aren’t necessarily clear.

“Do you want micromanagement of these issues by central officials, or do you want people within Indian Affairs who work with the communities and can get the First Nations feedback on a direct level about issues like bulimia nervosa? That’s a really tough question,” Brock said.

Opposition parties certainly have a political interest in the declaration, Brock said. It puts them at the front of a key issue and gives them something to hammer the Conservatives with in the House when it resumes Monday.

The last point in the declaration asks for full implementation of the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous People. NDP aboriginal affairs critic Romeo Saganash plans to introduce a private member’s bill on that subject Monday.